Ngapa Jukurrpa by Sabrina Robertson 31x61cm 8531SR

Ngapa Jukurrpa by Sabrina Nangala Robertson is a striking interpretation of Water Dreaming connected to Mikanji—a usually dry watercourse located west of Yuendumu. Within this creek bed lie mulju (soakages), symbolised by the white star-like designs in the painting. These forms represent the delicate imprints left in the sandy bed as water recedes, set against a yellow ochre background of finely dotted detail.

According to the Dreaming, the ancestral journey begins at Puyurru, northwest of Yuendumu, and travels to the mulju at Mikanji. By the side of the soakage, two old blind women from the Nampijinpa skin group were sitting. A rain ancestor, travelling from Puyurru, unleashed a powerful storm at Mikanji. As the women lifted their faces in an effort to see the gathering clouds, tears welled in their eyes—transforming into rain. Their spirits are believed to remain at Mikanji, embodied in the form of two ngapiri (river red gums) that grow beside the soakage.

This sacred Jukurrpa is held by men of the Jangala and Jampijinpa skin groups, and women of the Nangala and Nampijinpa groups.

Sabrina Nangala Robertson, daughter of the acclaimed artist Dorothy Napangardi and sister of Julie Nangala Robertson, continues her family's strong artistic legacy. Until recently, her surname was spelt as Robinson.